11 May BRASS NOTES #5 – The Final Version – by George D’Iorio

I want to thank all of you – once again – for volunteering for this “Tribute Corps” and I hope you will read this update carefully and consider my suggestions below.

At our May 4th rehearsal in Woburn we had a good turnout and made additional progress. Our performance level is ‘pretty good’ on almost our entire repertoire. At this point I think we are marginally ‘audience ready’ as we still have difficulty maintaining tempo and it seems we still have timing issues and lapses in using the correct dynamics.

I believe if we had ONE more rehearsal we could take our performance to the next level.

Surprise! The opportunity for another rehearsal exists because, thanks to Phil Dennesen’s negotiating skills, we have secured the Vittori Rocci for a rehearsal on Tuesday, May 14 (6:30- 8:30). This is great opportunity to practice in the space where the event will be held on the 18th. It gives us a chance to smooth out our movements into and out of Yesterday, get more comfortable in the space we will be performing, and work on tempo issues. Practicing in that space will also help us with balance. IF IT IS AT ALL POSSIBLE, I strongly urge you to attend this Tuesday rehearsal.

(Side note: we really need 1st sopranos at this rehearsal. Mike W. has been flying solo for the past two weeks on Tuesdays and I know he would welcome some company.)

In addition to Tuesday’s rehearsal, there are three other things every member of the ensemble can do to help us deliver the best production on May 18th.

1) Review your sheet music. Phil recently sent out digital copies of the music. If you need a fresh copy or you want all of your music to be vertical (not horizontal) the digital music is all vertical (portrait rather than landscape). If you write names of notes or fingering on your music and you use new copies please double check your transcription for accuracy. Please Note: Evergreen is written in the key of G, so all F’s are F sharps unless they are preceded by a natural sign #.
2) Practice: PLEASE run through all of your music prior to the Friday, May 17th dress rehearsal. The more confident you are playing your parts the less likely the tempo will slow down.

3) Be EARLY for the dress rehearsal. The parking in Salem way less than optimal! We still need to tune our instruments and if you are early we can get that done without eating into our dress rehearsal time.

I have enjoyed working with you to prepare for this Tribute corps event. You are helping to bring back some amazing memories and I expect some people at the event will probably have an emotional reaction to our performance (especially if it is really good).

I encourage everyone to do a little more ‘homework’ so that you are supremely confident at the dress rehearsal.

About Arbella Corps Inc.

Arbella Corps Inc is a registered 501(c)3 organization that provides performance opportunities to musicians and color guard of all ages. Arbella Independent is our competitive Winter Color Guard that serves teens from middle school through college aged and competes in the NESBA and WGI circuits in the Northeast. Arbella Brass is our all-age music ensemble that will performs at local venues in and around Boston and the North Shore. Potential members and Arbella and Drum Corps Alumni are always welcome to visit us at any of our practices.